Electric-car brake.



No. 644,7ls. Patented Mar. a, :900. u. E. MAILLE.

ELECTRIC CAR BRAKE.

(Application filed July 7, 1899.) (N o M o d e I 3 Sheets-Sheet l,

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(Applicltiun led July 7, 1899.)

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ArgnN'r ULDEREQUE E. MAILLE, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND.'

5ELECTRIC-CAR BRAKE.

SPECIFICATION formihg part of Letterslatent N0. 644,716, dated March. 6, 1906. Application filed July 7,1899. Serial No. 723,094. (No model.)

To' a/ZZ whom it may concern:

Be itknown that I, ULDEREQUE E. MAILLE, a citizen of the Dominion of Canada, residing at Providence, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric-Car Brakes, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

Like letters indicate like parts.

Figure 1 is a top planvof my invention. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the fork, constituting a portion of the bracket for the brake-levers. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the brake-levers in combination with the cone friction wheel and gears. Fig. 4 is a detail view in section on line x a; of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a view in enlarged section on line y y of Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a top plan of my invention with a modied form of brake-levers. Fig. 7 is a side elevation of said modied form. Fig. 8 is a top plan of my invention with a compound lever system for operating the brake mechanism. Fig. 9 is a top plan of a modified form of my invention. Fig. 10 is a side elevation of a sectional tubular screw to be used in the modied form of my invention last aforesaid. Fig. 11 is an end elevation of said sectional tubular screw. Fig. 12 is a side elevation of the lever-arm operating said screw and the rod to move said arm, the shaft being seen in section on line w w in Fig. 9.

My invention relates to the brake mechanism of electric cars; and it consists of the novel construction and combination of the several elements hereinafter particularly described, and set forth in the claims.

In the drawings, A is the case, inclosing the electric motor which rotates the shaft B. A pinion O is fastened on one end of said shaft and turns with it. On the opposite end of the shaft B is a cone-wheel D, rotating with the shaft B and slidable on said shaft longitudinally by means of the spline a. On the shaft B is also mounted a loose gear E, having a central conical recess into which the cone-shaped portion of the wheel D fits.

F F are the ear-wheels, and G the shaft on which they are mounted and fastened. On

the shaft G is secured the gear H, meshing with the pinion C. A cover or case I incloses the pinion C and gear H.

On the shaft Gis also fastened the gear J, engageable with the gear E of the shaft B. A case or cover I incloses the gears E and J.

From the case A a bracket K extends, whose outer end is curved, as shown in Fig. 5, and slotted at b. A brake-lever L is pivoted to the bracket K at c, and the inner shorter arm of said lever bears against the side of the gear E, Fig. 1. The outer longer arm of said lever is curved, as shown. A brake-lever M is pivoted on the pin d, which passes through the slots c e of a fork N, Fig. 5. Said fork N extends over and under the leverM, which passes through it transversely, as shown. The inner shorter arm of the lever M bears againstthe side of the cone-Wheel D above the shaft B, as seen in Fig. 3. The outer longer arm of the lever M is curved, and the curved ends of the levers L M cross each other, as shown. An adj usting-screw f, passing through the closed end of the fork N, has its inner end in contact with the lever M. A pin g passes through the holes h of the fork N, Fig. 2, and through the slot b of the bracket K, Fig. 5.

A brake-rod O has a forked end, between the branches of which the curved ends of the levers L M pass. A pin e' extends through the forked end of the brake-rod O and has friction-rollers j 7i; mounted thereon, which lie in contact with the curved ends of the levers L M, respectively.

The diameter of the gear J is less than that of the gear H. The diameter of the gear E is greater than and the diameter of the conewheel D is less than the diameter of the pinion C.

The motor rotates the shaft B and the connected pinion O and cone-wheel D. The pinion O drivesthe gear H, and the gear H turns the shaft G, on which it is fastened, and the shaft G turns the car-Wheels F F with it. The gear J drives the loose gear E at a speed less than the speed of the pinion O, while the conewheel D on the shaft B turns with the same speed as the pinion O.

By drawing the rod O in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 1 the levers L M turn on their pivots d c, respectively, being spread apart at their outer curved ends by the rollers j k of the pin e' of said rod O. The inner end of the lever M is thus thrown into forcible Contact IOO with the cone-wheel D and presses said wheel D along the spline a into frictional engagement with the loose gear E in the recess thereof, the lever L at the same time pressing its inner end against the face of the gear E to resist the pressure of the lever M. As the gear E and the cone-wheel D are moving at dierent speeds, said cone-wheel acts as a brake to check and overcome the rotation of the gears .I H C, thus stopping the travel of the car, which is at this time simply moving by its own momentum, the electric current of course having previously been cut off.

It is obvious that the gear E may be made with a diameter less than that of the pinion C, the principle being the same-wiz., the rotation of the cone-wheel and the contiguous loose gear at speeds different from each other, so that the cone-wheel acts as a brake, as hereinbefore specified.

The adjustment by means of the screw fis for the purpose of taking up the Wear of the inner faces of the levers L M, the slot b of the bracket K and the slots e e of the fork N allowing such adjustment.

In Figs. G and 7 I show a modified form of the brake-operating means. A lever-bar P turns on pin Z, a-nd a rod Q, having a forked end m, is pivotally connected at n to said bar P. On the bracket K are mounted by the pin o two bent levers R and S, whose outer ends are curved and spread outwardly. A stud or pin 1) from the bar P extends up between said curved ends of the levers R and S. The lever S has two angular bends, and its ends are bifurcated to bear against the hub of the gear E above and below the shaft B, as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 7. In an enlargement of each of the inner ends of the lever S is a socket in which is fitted a wearing-block provided with a stem screw-threaded at its end and held by a nut thereon, the wearingsurface of said block projecting from the branched end of the lever S and bearing against the hub of the gearE to afford a friction-surface. Said wearing-block can be removed when too much worn and a new one substituted therefor. The lever R has one angular bend and at its extremity carries a lever T, Apivoted thereon by the pin q. The lever T has its longer end bifurcated, which bears against the hub of the cone-wheel D above and. below the shaft B. The ends of the lever T have wearing-blocks similar to those already described. The shorter arm of the lever T has an adjusting-screw r through it, whose end bears against the lever R, the purpose of which screw is to take up the wear and to keep the ends of the lever T in proper contact with the cone-wheel D. The levers R T so connected act as one and together form a companion to the leverS. When the rod Q is drawn in the direction indicated by each other forcibly against the cone-wheel D and gear E, respectively, thus causing the cone-wheel D to press into the central conical recess of the gear E and producing sufficient friction to stop the car.

In Fig. 8 I show another lever system for operating the brake. On the pin s a lever U is centrally mounted, which has the links tu pivotally connected therewith at its ends. The curved lever V, pivotally mounted at u upon the bracket K, is pivotally connected to the end of the link t. The curved lever W, pivotally mounted at (Z, is fulcrumed on the pin w at the end of the link U. The lever W is pivotally connected at one end to the link e', whose end is pivotally connected with the lever or bar I. When the rod Q is moved in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 8, said levers V W' and links if u z coperate to bring the inner ends of the levers VNV inwardly against the hub of the gear E and the cone-wheel D, respectively, thus causing the cone-wheel D to bear forcibly in the central recess of the gear E and stopping the car.

Instead of having the conedwheel on the shaft B of the motor it may be on the shaft G of the car-wheel, and in this case the adjacent gear upon the shaft G is furnished with a conical seat or recess for the reception of the cone-wheel. This construction is shown in Figs. 9, l0, Il, and l2.

The cone-wheel D' is made with a central concentric recess and is fastened by screws to the hub of the wheel F. The gear J is loosely mounted on the shaft G and has its hub enter in the central recess of the wheel D. Said gear J also has a beveled annular recess in which the cone-wheel D fits. This gear J is driven by the gear E', which is fast upon the motor-shaft B. The width of the gear E' exceeds that of the gear J', so that the teeth of the latter which at any time are in engagement with the teeth of the former may slide thereon when the gear J is moved. The mechanism for moving the gear J consists of a tubular screw C', made in two longitudinal sections united by screws through ears or lugs ci and having very coarsely-pitched threads Z1. This screw C is loose upon the shaft G. Its threads engage with those of the fixed nut F', whichv is fastened by screws to the frame or bracket G. The cylindrical portion of the screw C is received and held by the yokes or half-bearings H', which are screwed together by the screws c c', passing through the ears or lugs e' e thereof. The upper of the yokes or bearings H has a lever-arm K' extending therefrom, and a rod Q, With a forked end m', is pivoted at n to the end of the arm K. A spline o' compels the screw C to turn with the yokes H H and arm K'. When the rod Q is moved in the direction of the arrow in Fig. l2, the arm K is correspondingly moved and the yokes H' H and screws C are partially rotated. The threads b of the screw C engaging with the threads of the fixed nut F' cause the screw C to move toward the car- IOO IIO

wheel F, and so to slide the gear J' on the shaft G against the cone-wheel D', thus causing friction between the gear J and the conewheel D and stopping the car, the gears E and J being of such diameter that the gear J', driven by the gear E', rotates faster on the shaft G than the shaft G and its connected car-wheel F rotate.

The principle involved in this invention is the use of a cone friction-wheel rotating with and fastened on a shaft, and a gear loose upon the same shaft, but driven by gearing from the electric motor at a speed of rotation greater or less than the rotation of the shaft, and a lever or levers arranged to bring said loose gear and cone-wheel into frictional contact to constitute a brake.

By the use of this device the brake-shoes commonly engaging with the car-wheels are entirely dispensed with, as also the means for operating them. The car-wheels are very much worn by such brake-shoes, and the true circle of the wheel-tread is impaired ordestroyed. By myin vention the car-wheels are not'injured at all and the friction members of my device can be cheaply replaced when worn.

Whereas in common brakes for car-wheels there is a shoe brought into immovable contact with a revolving wheel on the rim thereof, thus causing great wear and friction both on the brake-shoe and the wheel and a sudden application of friction, in my device it will be perceived that both the cone-wheel and loose gear are in rotation in the same direction, but one with a speed only slightly different than that of t-he other, so that the force of friction is more slowly applied and in a manner more favorable and effective.

It is obviously within my invention if two friction clutch members are used other than a loose gear and a fixed cone-wheel upon the shaft-as, for example, a disk instead of a cone-wheel-operating frictionally upon a fiat face of a gear.

I claim as a novel and useful invention and desire to secure by Letters Patentl. In a brake mechanism for electric cars, the combination of a rotatable shaft properly mounted and having carwheels fastened thereon, a gear of a diameter less than that of the car-wheels fastened upon said shaft and having a certain number of teeth, a second gear fastened upon said shaft, of adiameter less than that of the first gear and having a less number of teeth but of the same size, an electric motor having a shaft rotated thereby and suitably mounted, a pinion fastened upon the motor-shaft and having a certain number of teeth engageable with the teeth of the gear first mentioned, a gear, loose upon the motor-shaft, having a larger number of teeth than said pinion, engageable with the second-named gear and also having a central conical recess, a cone-wheel sliding upon and turning with the motor-shaft and movable into said recess of the said loose gear on the motor-shaft, and a pair of levers, suitably mounted, and means to operate the same, whereby said cone-wheel is movable into frictional contact with the loose gear of the motor-shaft, substantially as described.

2. In a brake mechanism for cars having an electric motor with a shaft rotated thereby and a pair of car-wheels rotating with a properly-mounted shaft and driven by said motor, the combination therewith of two gears fast upon one of said shafts and a fixed gear and a loose gear on the other of said shafts, a conewheel fast on the shaft last named, movable into frictional contact with said loose gear and a lever arranged to move said cone-wheel into such contact with said loose gear, all said gears being of such diameter and furnished with such number of teeth, that the gear and wheel, soin contact,move with unequal speed, substantially as shown.

3. In a brake mechanism for cars having an electric motor with a shaft rotated thereby and a pair of car-wheels rotating with a properly-mounted shaft and driven by said motor, the combination therewith of two gears fast upon one of said shafts, a xed gear and a loose gear on the other of said shafts, a conewheel fast upon the shaft last named, movable into frictional contact with said loose gear, and means arranged and adapted to impart such movement to the cone-wheel, said fixed cone-wheel and loose gear, so in contact, rotating at unequal speeds, substantially as described.

4t. In a brake mechanism for cars havingkan electric motor with a shaft rotated thereby and a pair of oar-wheels rotating with a properly-mounted shaft and driven-by said motor, the combination therewith of a cone-Wheel mounted on one of said shafts and adapted to rotate therewith at the rate of said shaft and a loose gear mounted on the same shaft and adapted to be driven by said motor and connected gearing at a rate of rotation dierent than that of the cone-wheel, and means arranged and adapted to bring said cone-wheel and loose gear into forcible contact, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

5. In a brake mechanism for cars having an electric motor and a shaft rotated thereby, two friction clutch members, mounted on said shaft, and means, substantially as shown, to impart to said two clutch members a dierent rate of rotation, one of said clutch members rotating with said shaft, but movable thereon, and the otherloose upon said shaft, and means adapted to bring said two clutch members into frictional contact with each other, substantially as and for the purpose specified.,

6. In a brake mechanism for cars having an electric motor with a shaft and a cone-wheel turning with but slidable thereon, the combination therewith of a loose gear upon said shaft, rotatable at a speed different from that of the shaft, substantially as shown, a xed bracket properly supported, and a lever fulcrumed thereon and having one end in con- IOO IIO

tact with said gear, an adjustable arm mounted on said bracket and a lever adjustably fulcruined on said arm and having one end in Contact with the cone-Wheel, together with means adapted to move said. levers in unison to and against said gear and cone-Wheel, respectively, as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I aix my signatr in presence of two Witnesses.

ULDEREQUE E. MAILLE.

Witnesses: i

ANNIE E. PERCE, WARREN R; PERCE. 

